Antonio Davis scored a season-high 23 points and grabbed 11
rebounds as the Indiana Pacers dominated for three quarters and
held on for a 111-108 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Reggie Miller scored 21 points and Chris Mullin added 17 for the
Pacers, who never trailed and held a 90-70 lead at the start of
the fourth quarter. Indiana has won six of its last eight games
and is one win away from tying its franchise record for
victories in a season set in 1994-95 and matched in 1995-96.

"It could have been worse at the end, but we got it done,"
Mullin said. "Sam (Mitchell) exploded and had an excellent
game. We must give them all the credit, they never gave up. We
want home-court big, but if it doesn't happen, we'll have to go
on the road and get the job done. It is just great to play with
these guys and the coaching staff. I love my team."

Dale Davis grabbed 11 rebounds and Mark Jackson handed out seven
assists for the Pacers, who moved within five games of the idle
Chicago Bulls for the top spot in the Eastern Conference.

Kevin Garnett had 24 points and 12 rebounds and Sam Mitchell
added 22 points for the Timberwolves, who lost for just the
second time in seven games. Anthony Peeler had a trio of
three-pointers as Minnesota made five consecutive baskets from
behind the arc in a 15-4 run that closed the deficit to 110-108
with 20 seconds to play.

"Our defense quit getting out and contesting shots," said
Indiana coach Larry Bird about the fourth quarter. "Our defense
was pretty good in the first quarter and then we started trading
baskets with them. We had things going our way, but then we
gave up too many three's. We didn't play that well, we had a
letdown in the stretch, but we got the win and now we move onto
the next one."

Marbury then fouled Jackson, who missed two free throws with 13
seconds left. Peeler, who had all 14 of his points in the
fourth, missed a baseline jumper on Minnesota's next possession.
Terry Porter grabbed the rebound but his layup was blocked by
Derrick McKey. McKey got the ball to Miller, who was fouled and
made one free throw with 3.3 seconds to go. The Wolves had a
chance to tie but Garnett's three-pointer from the top was well
off the mark.

"You can't come back against a team like this with a deficit
that big on the road and win," said Minnesota coach Flip
Saunders. "It takes too much energy. But we had a good effort.
Sam (Mitchell) and K.G. (Garnett) both played outstanding. One
thing this game will do is prepare us for playoff teams. We are
really a fourth-quarter team. We made a run after a slow start
and that's a good sign."

Travis Best, who had six points in 13 minutes, gave the Pacers a
96-78 lead when he drove for a layup with 8:19 remaining. Peeler
answered with a 23-footer nine seconds later to spark a 12-2
burst. Mitchell had six points in the run that he capped with a
pair of free throws to make it 98-90 with 5:17 to go. Miller
scored six points as Indiana responded with an 8-3 spurt to take
a 106-93 lead on his layup with 3:30 left.

Antonio Davis, Mullin, and Jackson each scored nine points as
the Pacers shot 63 percent (15-for-24) from the field in the
first quarter en route to a 35-16 lead. Indiana jumped out to a
16-4 advantage when Jackson hit a three-pointer with seven
minutes left in the first. Mullin sank a 23-footer and a
three-pointer before and Antonio Davis finished a fast break
with a layup to push Indiana's lead to 31-13.

Jalen Rose scored all eight of his points in the second period
and the Pacers took a 60-40 lead into halftime. Indiana's lead
did not fall below 16 points in the third and the Pacers had
their biggest cushion when Antonio Davis had a tip-in to make it
90-67 with 25 seconds left.

"They made a very valiant effort coupled with a couple of good
three-point shots, but we were able to come out ahead," Rose
said. "I just come in and try to bring new energy to the floor
and our teammates. I enjoy my role and just want to help the
team win."

Stanley Roberts, had 16 points and seven rebounds off the bench
for Minnesota, which finished at 48 percent (42-for-87) after
making just 7-of-23 shots in the opening quarter.